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BfR status seminar on cadmium in the food chain
Cadmium is undesirable in food, because it can damage health. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has derived in January 2009 a new value for the lifelong tolerable weekly intake of the heavy metal. This is with 2,5 micrograms per kilogram of body weight significantly below the previously relied amount of 7 micrograms, once by the World Health Organisation (WHO) derived provisionally.
EFSA has identified in an EU-wide estimate that consumers are only just having their usual food consumption below the new tolerable intake. In certain regions and population groups the cadmium intake is higher, however. In particular, consumers who eat a lot of grains and vegetables can exceed this value.
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Scientists at the Max Rubner Institute examine milk
"The results of vitamin determination in ESL milk can be the effect summarize that the present study - compared to short-term heated milk - no evidence of lower concentrations of vitamins in ESL milk has provided." This is one of the conclusions that draw scientists from the Max Rubner Institute at Kiel from the investigation of 30 17 milk samples from companies in the German dairy industry. It could be stated in summary that ESL milk - should be regarded as high-quality food - regardless of the manufacturing process.
Milk samples from the common production methods, of briefly heated milk (commonly referred to as "fresh milk"), differently produced ESL milk and ultra-high temperature milk (UHT milk) were compared. The results thus represent a snapshot of the quality of drinking milk in Germany. As the Kiel researchers found, from a microbiological and hygienic point of view, there are no relevant differences between traditionally produced "fresh milk" and ESL milk. Depending on the manufacturing process used, ESL milk, on the other hand, has differences in the state of the whey proteins and in the furosin content - parameters that are suitable for the analytical differentiation of milk types. Whey proteins are denatured differently depending on the production process, whereby it must be emphasized that the denaturation of whey proteins does not represent a loss of nutritional value. Furosin is an indicator that detects the Maillard reaction between proteins and sugar that takes place when foods are heated. If ESL milk is produced using a high-temperature process, the milk has a higher furosin content than milk that has been filtered through microfiltration to reduce germs. A process that is always supplemented by heating.
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Scientists at the Max Rubner Institute demonstrate hygienic quality
"Mini Salamis are classified in principle as a microbiologically stable raw sausage with good maturation and production technology due to manufacturing technologies," says Dr. Manfred Gareis, head of the Institute of Microbiology and Biotechnology of the Max Rubner Institute, the result of two years of study. All products were purchased commercially and studied by scientists, were microbiologically not objectionable. Even in Salamis, which - in the context of the research project - during production were deliberately inoculated with dangerous germs, the end of the process no more charges could be detected.
After a nationwide accumulation of salmonellosis occurred in children in summer 2007, a study was initiated by the Federal Ministry for Nutrition, Food and Consumer Protection (BMELV). For the trade study were 2008 and in January 2009 206 total Minisalami products of different categories (smoked, ripening, mold-ripened) of 15 different manufacturers purchased and analyzed. The pleasing result that in any of the samples of salmonella were found. This was an indication of the good quality of the materials used and the consistently good ripening and manufacturing technology, the MRI scientists.
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Practice information from the bulletin of the mining company for meat research on MRI in Kulmbach
Source: Meat Science 81 (2009), 664-670.
The cooking process takes for meat to a heat-induced denaturation of the globin share of Myoglobines. Two possibilities are open: denaturation of the iron content to brown iron (III) hemochrome, the pigment that is typically associated with uncooked beef. On the other hand, denaturation proportion of the iron to iron (II) hemochrome to a red pigment, but the fairly easy oxidation for brown iron (III) hemochrome subject. Various factors of the flesh, as its redox potential or the origin of the muscle, as well as external factors to mention, would be the packaging and non-meat ingredients that act on the color of the meat after heating.
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TUM food chemists discover bitter taste receptors for the full-bodied taste of beer
"Ugh, bitter" - this instinctive reaction we owe the evolution. Many toxic substances taste bitter on the tongue. However, many stimulants: Campari, dark chocolate or beer would be just boring without bitters. A research team led by food chemist Prof. Thomas Hofmann from the Technische Universität München (TUM) has now been found, like a cold beer, a racy Pils or a drinkable wheat on the tongue unfold their specific, fine bitter taste.
Whether in the beer garden or freshly grilled meat - a cold beer is a treat, especially in summer. With responsible are the bitter principles of the beer: They are formed by the addition of hops during the wort boiling and add to the attractive taste of the amber nectar with. 15 these chemical compounds from hops and beer have now taken food chemist TUM closer look: It could Prof. Thomas Hofmann identify the three receptors on our tongues from the Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory and his staff, the first to the bitter taste of beer Report brain - and thus ensure the enjoyment effect.
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Bremer process engineer Professor Lutz Mädler published with American colleagues in the journal "Nature Materials" research tasks to nanotoxicity.
Can toxicology of nanomaterials predict? So far not and moreover is not at all clear how a plausible prediction is feasible. Scientifically is the question nanotoxicity Neuland. But the topic is on the scientific agenda. Thus Professor Lutz Mädler, head of the mechanical process engineering in the art production technology at the University of Bremen and Director of Process Engineering at the Institute of Materials Science (IWT), designated jointly with American colleagues from science and industry strategic research priorities to establish a predictable toxicology of nanomaterials. The journal "Nature Materials" has an article on published (www.natur.com/naturematerials).
From the perspective of the authors, it is first necessary in this current issue to develop a broad base model, which allows statements about the toxicity and biological damage mechanisms are derived. The interaction of nanoparticles with biological interfaces are highly complex and involve interactions with proteins, membranes, cells, DNA, and organelles, simultaneously change the nanoparticles themselves. To understand this and deduce possible consequences, engineers, chemists, biologists, physicists and physicians must find a common consensus and make their research initiatives complementary and integrative. The review article in the internationally renowned journal "Nature Materials" is intended to help to harmonize the research in this field in the world and to set new impulses.
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On 16.Juni 2009 European residue was - Höchstmengenverordnung 470 / 2009 published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
"The testing and classification procedures under this Regulation is a prerequisite for the approval of veterinary drugs supplied for food animals," said State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Gert Lindemann, in Berlin. "The listed under Regulation MRLs are geared towards the safety of the consumption of foods. The Regulation combines important elements of medicinal and food safety," said Lindemann on.
This is important for the safety of medicines and for the food safety project was successfully completed with significant involvement of the German delegation to protracted consultation process at the EU Council working group level.
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Artificial sweeteners are found as sugar substitutes in many beverages and foods. They are extensively studied and are considered safe. Because of their use can be assumed that they are entered on urban waste water in the water cycle and therefore very well serve as indicators of urban waste water.
A new trace analysis method for the determination of seven artificial sweeteners in water was therefore developed at the TZW. A specialist article to be published shortly (M. Scheurer, H.-J. Brauch, FT Lange, Analysis and occurrence of seven artificial sweeteners in German waste water and surface water and in soil aquifer treatment (SAT), Analytical & Bioanalytical Chemistry 2009, in press).
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Time for reassessment
When foods are heated and thereby protein reacts with sugar, coloring and delicious flavors are formed. Everyday examples are roasted coffee, crispy crusts or golden yellow beer. The biochemist Louis Maillard discovered this reaction in 1912 and to this day it is named after him. At the end of the Maillard reaction produces stable compounds that advanced glycation endproducts, AGEs shortly. They are from a medical perspective of great interest: the Maillard reaction and hence the formation of AGE runs namely not only in food but also in the human body. This formed AGEs are considered harmful; they accumulate for example in the eye lenses of patients with cataracts or the brains of Alzheimer patients. They should also play a key role in triggering chronic inflammation. But even in healthy individuals to AGEs accumulate: "We verzuckern internally in the course of normal aging," said Professor Thomas Henle, University of Dresden, at an event of the Institute Danone Nutrition for Health eV mid-May in Hannover..
Since the gram Maillardverbindungen enter the body every day, especially on bread and pasta or coffee, moved the role of dietary AGEs in the development of diseases in the focus of investigations. It was concluded that dietary AGEs have been identified as a risk factor for cardiovascular and renal diseases. Actually, however, the sum term AGEs includes a plurality of individual connections "The Pro-risk literature is to be treated with great caution, because so far is not a single study that defined AGE-structures for harmful processes are responsible," Henle said. By contrast, more and more studies suggest that certain AGEs could have a positive effect. For example, went high AGE levels in plasma of hemodialysis associated with higher survival rates. Other data demonstrated antioxidant, prebiotic and anti-carcinogenic effects.
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More safety for consumers
A new guide for traceability within feed and food chains are medium industry, government and consumer organizations and others interested in an efficient tool with which to identify weak points in the production chain. The "Stakeholders' Guide" was under an international workshop from 6. to 7. On May Max Rubner Institute (MRI) took place in Kulmbach, presents. It is a result of the EU project Sigma chain at which 11 partners from science and industry from 7 countries participated.
The special scientific approach of the project is to be emphasized: SigmaChain is cross-chain and thus goes beyond existing HACCP and other concepts that are supposed to guarantee safety throughout the production process. "In times of ever longer and more complex production chains, this is an important addition to current systems and makes a significant contribution to the safety and quality of food," says Dr. Fredi Schwägele, head of the analytics working group at the Max Rubner Institute.
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Summary of a presentation of 44. Kulmbacher week 2009
During the smoking of meat products Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are formed by incomplete combustion of wood. The group of PAH include about 660 different compounds, some of which are due to their toxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic properties of great importance.
In one study, PAHs were investigated in curing smoke during the smoking process. The resulting from the combustion of beech wood smoke came from two traditional smokehouses in the region Zlatibor (Serbia) and was in two different cartridges (PUF and XAD-2) collected. the 16 were analyzed by the EU as priority PAHs classified by means of a Fast-GC / HRMS method.
